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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24742006">Tales of Romance Beyond Light and Darkness</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moiloru/pseuds/Moiloru'>Moiloru</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Romances of Justice [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Childhood Friends, Crushes, Dinner, During Canon, F/F, F/M, Family, Friendship, Love, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Gyakuten Kenji 2 | Ace Attorney Investigations 2, Romance, Spoilers, Teasing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 04:08:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,795</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24742006</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moiloru/pseuds/Moiloru</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world where justice always prevails over crime and where hope always prevails over despair, will love prevail over hate? Some people are basically made for one another but some other pairings are a little more over-the-top. Life can also be unfair and the bonds created with time can be ruptured immediately. Whose love will be able to make it through these dark times? In between love, hate and justice, nobody can predict what will happen. Don’t be the prey, but the predator.</p><p>Multiple shippings. Tags will be updated as the story advances. Every chapter is given its own rating; mature and explicit chapters might be skipped without losing any understanding of the plot. Also on FFN. </p><p>Part three of the 'Romances of Justice' series.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ayasato Mayoi | Maya Fey/Naruhodou Ryuuichi | Phoenix Wright, Itonokogiri Keisuke | Dick Gumshoe/Suzuki Mako | Maggey Byrde</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Romances of Justice [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1775962</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Dinner Plans</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As Phoenix, Maya and Pearl come back from their trip in London; Edgeworth, Franziska and Gumshoe have to deal with the aftermath of their recent cases...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>After delaying this project for so long - multiple months, actually - I'm glad to present to you the third part of this series, when things will get a little more interesting for our characters!  I really hope you'll like it since I am so excited to finally beginning to write it and I think I've improved somewhat as a writer ever since the two introductory oneshots, thanks to the good deal of advice I received from kind-hearted writers. Please note that knowledge of the first two parts of this series is not completely mandatory. I'll give you a short summary: Phoenix and Maya have become couple soon after 3-5 and are in the middle of procedures to adopt Pearl (From Friends to Lovers). A little after that, they go on a trip to London to visit Professor Layton and his friends, giving Pearl a chance to meet Luke, and developing a child crush on him (Loving Kids and English Air). This story begins right after that. Please note that it will be divided into nine arcs of varying lengths. So without further ado, enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong><em> <span class="u">Arc One:</span> </em> <em> Imperfect Kids of Justice</em></strong>
</p><p>
  <strong><em> <span class="u">Chapter One:</span> </em> <em> Dinner Plans </em></strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em><span class="u">Chapter's Rating:</span> K+</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>April 13, 2019, 4:29 PM</strong><br/>
<strong>Los Angeles Airport</strong><br/>
<strong>Outside the Airport</strong>
</p><p>“Well, that was a rather lengthy trip!” Phoenix commented as the three of them set foot out of the airport. “I feel like we’ve been in the air for days!”</p><p>“You’re such an old man, Nick, you know that?” Maya grinned at him like a little child. “You’re so lost without your TV shows for old geezers!”</p><p>“That’s rather mean of you, Mystic Maya,” Pearl chipped in and said, questioning her cousin’s words. “Mr. Nick is not <em>that</em> old, is he?”</p><p>“I’m not, Pearls, don’t worry. I’m 27, not 72.” the lawyer shot back with a sigh. He’d been called an old man by his long-time assistant more times that he could count and while it served him as a pretty cruel reminder that he was the oldest one in their relationship, he often brushed it off as Maya’s usual silliness, which it was.</p><p>In reality, he often thought he would need to worry the day she stopped calling him that…</p><p>But that raised a good point: Phoenix, as he said himself, was 27. An adult, not yet in his thirties, but an adult nonetheless. The notion was unquestionable. For Maya, however, the issue was a little tougher to address: she was 20, so a young adult too, although her behavior contrasted to that. At first glance, she could have still been a little under her twenties and the defense attorney had often wondered whether or not their relationship would be seen as weird because of that. Because Maya was more than just an immature young woman: everyone who knew her personally - Phoenix first and foremost - knew that deep down, she was already extremely mature for her age, due to having faced life’s greatest tragedies in her first two decades. Her childish persona, although quite funny most of the time, was more of a cover for her traumatic past. Still, she was still a cheery girl, when life decided to leave her in peace for more than five minutes.</p><p>They had discussed this together and it had been Maya herself who had insisted that it didn’t matter; that what others might say didn’t matter. They loved each other very much, that they both knew, but as long as the detail trifled Phoenix, he thought he wouldn’t be able to fully enjoy his relationship with Maya.</p><p>Her main point had been that as they would grow older, their age gap of seven years would not seem like anything crazy. And it was mainly true: she was 20 now and might have appeared a little young but with a few more years, the age gap between them would be unobservable. She had also insisted that she had been the one falling for him - although Phoenix had begun to grow feelings for her, ever since he had been able to put his past romance with Dahlia Hawthorne behind him, and that was rather recent - and that she had waited to be in her twenties to confess to him, because she also knew that back when she was only seventeen and they had met, it would indeed have been a little arguable, if not ethically wrong.</p><p>This had reassured Phoenix and some of his suspicions about himself were lifted. And he had also been very glad that Maya had been the one to bring it up because he didn’t know if he’d be able to do it himself. The very reason he had doubted himself in the first place was because his first and only romance before this one - with the Hawthorne twins, terrible experience - had been with someone, or rather with people, his age and in a more ‘classic’ fashion. They had met on university campus, fallen in love and eventually broke-up (although this part had been a little unorthodox, to say the least). With Maya, it had happened differently: he saved her many times thanks to his skills as a lawyer and in counterpart, she had agreed to become his assistant. In the end, the hardships they went through brought them closer, to a point where they had become a couple and even filled adoption papers for little Pearl who had been left without any parent fit to raise her.</p><p>The little family began to look for a cab to bring them to the office when Phoenix took out his cell phone and turned it on to check if anything was up since the last time he had checked his texts and calls, more than ten hours ago. And in fact, he had been called twice - which obviously went to voicemail - and had received a single text. All three of them came from the same person: Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth.</p><p><strong>&lt;From Edgeworth - 3:18 PM&gt; </strong> <em>“We are having dinner tonight with Franziska, Gumshoe and Maggey. The three of you are welcome to come too, if your trip was not too tiring. Please reply so that I can eventually send you the address. - Edgeworth”</em></p><p>Phoenix read the text from his best friend while the two Fey cousins looked for a taxi. After reading it, and telling himself that the idea was nice, he called them out. He knew they would agree to it - especially Maya who was not one to pass on an opportunity to eat, ever - but he still needed to ask, for anything, more to warn them.</p><p>“Maya, Pearls!” he had to almost shout considering they had gone off pretty far in the few moments he had left them out of his sight. At least, it was enough to gather the little spiritualist’s attention who tugged on Maya’s sleeve to get her attention, too.</p><p>They went back a few steps towards Phoenix who didn’t look quite in shape to run after them anyway.</p><p>“Yeah, what’s up Nick?” Maya asked her boyfriend, having earned her attention.</p><p>“Edgeworth texted me and asks if we would like to have dinner with him, Franziska, Gumshoe, and Maggey tonight. I’m up for it but I wanted to get your thoughts.” he plainly said, summarizing the prosecutor’s text in a few words - which was remarkable considering Miles Edgeworth was known to be a man of few words, himself.</p><p>“Oh really?” the future Kurain Master wondered out loud. “Well, you know me, Nick: wherever there’s dinner, I’m going!”</p><p>Her enthusiastic response further showed Phoenix that they’d be going whether Pearl really wanted or not. Heck, he was lucky to have been up for it too, or she would have dragged him to whatever fancy place the famous barrister had planned to treat them dinner at.</p><p>This left Pearl without much of a choice. She also knew that when it came to food, her cousin and adopted mother would not give up an inch of ground, thus making her own decision an easy one. And it was not as if the channeling genius was the type to go against the majority choice, especially when it came from her beloved adopted parents.</p><p>“Okay, Mr. Nick. That would be nice, as Mystic Maya said.” she ended up replying, showing the spiky-haired young man a soft smile.</p><p>“Alright. I’ll send him a text to tell him we’ll be there.” Phoenix told them. “While I do that, please fetch a taxi so we might finally get back to the office. I’m dead tired, and considering we’re having dinner tonight, I don’t think I’m getting a good night’s sleep anytime soon…” he sighed. And to add insult to injury - or exhaustion, to be more precise - he was the one dragging Maya’s suitcase, along his own, and carrying Pearl’s little voyage bag. He was no Olympian god - although his girlfriend loved to believe it - and pulling almost all-nighters conversing about archeology with Professor Layton for a week had not helped him get rest. It had been good for his culture, sure, but right now, he felt like a total mess and would not be satisfied until he at least had a nap.</p><p>“Got it!” Maya said, already going back to the side of the pavement with her cousin’s hand in her own, looking for the car that would bring them back to the Wright &amp; Co. Law Offices, their second home.</p><p>Phoenix turned his attention back to his cell phone and wondered if he should call his rival prosecutor or simply text him. As it turned out, he preferred the latter option, considering that his friend was often occupied and he didn’t want to interrupt him while he was doing something important.</p><p>The thing was, Phoenix was slow, really slow, <em>extremely</em> slow when it came to writing texts. And thus, a text that would have taken twenty seconds to write for a normal person, took Phoenix a full two minutes!</p><p><strong>&lt;To Edgeworth - 4:36 PM&gt; </strong> <em>“We just landed in L.A and are heading back to the office. We’ll be there. Does the place you had in mind make kids’ meal? Thanks for the invite. - Phoenix”</em></p><p>Indeed, Pearl was not the glutton her cousin was and wouldn’t be able to eat anything outrageous for a ten-year-old child. This had proven true when she had needed to go for the “Kiddo Burger” once when her cousin had gone for the “Triple Chilicheese”. The memory brought a smile to Phoenix’s face.</p><p>Something he also noted was that his prosecutor friend always signed his texts ‘Edgeworth’, his last name, while Phoenix always signed them with his first name. He wondered if it was strange in any way for best friends to call each other by their last names, like they did pretty much always. It was actually for this reason that the defense attorney preferred to conclude his texts to the former Demon Prosecutor with ‘Phoenix’ rather than ‘Wright’, although it was just a detail, nothing more.</p><p>And with this matter out of the way, Phoenix finally was able to catch up - well, trying to catch up would be closer to the truth, considering he could hardly walk with baggage for three, let alone run - to his girlfriend and her cousin who had finally got a taxi.</p><p>“Well, back to the office now!” he said and earned two nods from the two spirit mediums as they entered the black cab, leaving their London trip behind them to go back to their ‘normal’ life of channeling spirits and defending the innocent.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>April 13, 2019, 2:47 PM</strong><br/>
<strong>High Prosecutors’ Offices</strong><br/>
<strong>Room 1202 - Miles Edgeworth’s Office</strong>
</p><p>“This is going to be a lot of trouble, but it has to be done.” Miles Edgeworth spoke as he held a file and stared at it intensely. Both Franziska von Karma and Dick Gumshoe were listening closely, although the former more out of respect for her long-time rival prosecutor than to really glean any information.</p><p>“I’ll be taking the cases regarding everything that happened in Zheng Fa.” the lady prosecutor announced, her tone not leaving any room for discussion. This was a tone Edgeworth and Detective Gumshoe knew very well and it meant that arguing was pointless.</p><p>“Very well,” the magenta-wearing prosecutor nodded in agreement. “that indeed seems like a good idea, Franziska. Interpol orders, I suppose?”</p><p>Miles’ reasoning was sound: she had been after the smuggling ring, and thus after Blaise Debeste by proxy due to her orders from the international police, and it only made sense she would be the one prosecuting those trials.</p><p>“Correct. Lang wants a swift resolution to each of these cases and I feel obligated to satisfy those demands,” the light blue-haired woman explained. “and with Interpol’s failure in catching Shelly de Killer, it is mandatory we get a conviction before the International Court for every one of them. You’ll be prosecuting dead people, Miles Edgeworth.”</p><p>“Good to see you are as confident as always, Franziska.” Miles said with a hint of a smile on his features. Franziska von Karma had been known for her extreme self-confidence ever since the beginning of her prosecuting career in Germany, at only age 13. And while this self-confidence would often turn into an irritating form of arrogance, she had become a seeker of the truth as much as he was and had left her past arrogance behind her.</p><p>“The cases are airtight, considering all the evidence we’ve gathered. Talking about evidence…” she turned her face to look directly at the detective in the trench coat standing against the door. “I assume you brought me everything I’ll need, Scruffy?”</p><p>“Yes, ma’am!” Gumshoe saluted as he produced a bag full of evidence. “There you go!”</p><p>He handed the whip-yielding prosecuting attorney the plastic bag which contained different pieces of evidence, from an auction hammer to a candelabra. She took it and looked at it with disdain she didn’t bother hiding. If there was something the three of them could agree on, it was that this case had been a rather bloody one.</p><p>And it was only the first side of the coin.</p><p>Miles eyed Franziska as she tossed the bag aside, visibly not wanting to look at her evidence any longer. After that, he turned his eyes over to the large detective as he rested his face on his hands, visibly a little tired. And it took a lot of work to get Miles Edgeworth to feel any kind of tiredness.</p><p>“Detective, I hope you brought <em>my</em> evidence?” he asked, a little suspicious that the police officer had not handed him a bag for him yet. And considering he needed a lot more evidence than Franziska as well as case files, he <em>knew</em> that Gumshoe had forgotten them.</p><p><em>So much for giving him a raise recently… </em>He thought as let out a little sigh even before his assistant could say anything in response to his question.</p><p>“Hmm… i-it’s… um…” the detective struggled to find his words and grew in a little panic.</p><p>He was fortunate though, as his long-time boss decided to put him out of his misery before he could find any excuse for forgetting to bring the all-important evidence.</p><p>“I get it, Detective: you forgot,” Miles said, gazing at the pale face of the goofy detective. “and I am not exactly surprised, you see. I am not giving you raises just to take them back not even a week afterwards.”</p><p>“I-I’m sorry sir! I put the files and evidence in a drawer while I went to scan a document for Ms. von Karma and I forgot to bring them with me on my way here!” Gumshoe explained his predicament to his boss; another instance where his goofiness had led to a mistake.</p><p>Fortunately for him, Edgeworth knew the cases he was to prosecute by heart, having solved them in person. They were a pain to memorize, still, but this was more or less personal and he had to ensure the truth would be brought to light in court. Thus, his unusual forgiveness.</p><p>“It’s fine.” he surprisingly told his subordinate, earning him a look of surprise from the detective as well as from the blue-haired prosecutor. Leniency didn’t fit in his known behavior and Gumshoe began to sweat as he wondered what way Miles had found to punish him nonetheless. However, none came. “I have got all the details memorized as well as my notes from our investigation. Just make sure to bring everything a few days before the trial and it’ll be fine.”</p><p>“R-Really, sir?!” the oldest person in the room wondered aloud, a glimmer of hope appearing in his eyes as he registered his superior’s words. “Thank you, Mr. Edgeworth, sir! I’ll make sure to bring them to you next time I come here!”</p><p>“That would be for the best.” Miles simply said as he took a sip of his tea. He thought they’d be done talking about the “forgotten evidence” incident but was mistaken.</p><p>“Not so fast, Scruffy!” Franziska chipped in, rather angrily. “You said you had a document for me, so where is it?”</p><p>Her harsh tone was back in full swing as Edgeworth realized what she was talking about. He also realized that the detective was in far more trouble than he had originally thought. Because while Miles Edgeworth had learned to forgive, and even to be gentle thanks to a <em>certain someone’s</em> help, this was not the case of Franziska von Karma.</p><p>Nevertheless, he couldn’t stop himself but smiling a little as he knew exactly what was about to happen to the poor - in every sense of the word - detective.</p><p>“U-Uh…” was all Gumshoe could mutter as he glanced around the room for a hiding spot. However, this was desperate: Gumshoe of all people knew the layout of this office more than anyone - even the owner of the room himself - and that there was no way out of it. He could already feel Franziska’s fury from across the room as he prepared himself.</p><p>“You forgot it, didn’t you?” Franziska asked, merely stating the obvious. “You’re unlucky I am not as forgiving as Miles Edgeworth here!” and with that, she pulled her whip and began unleashing it on her favorite victim. She actually didn’t even know what kind of document Gumshoe had scanned for her - she had definitely not asked for anything more than the evidence - but it bothered her anyway. If a document was to be delivered to her, it must have meant it was important and not having it was unacceptable.</p><p>The imposing detective shrieked in pain a few times and Miles didn’t do anything to make his rival and trustworthy prosecutor friend stop in her fury. Had Gumshoe not forgotten his evidence, he would have thought about it, but with two omissions in a row, he thought the detective might have deserved it, at least a little.</p><p>Although he had voiced his disagreement about the whip multiple times and had told Franziska that she wouldn’t be able to use it on people forever. And of course, the only thing he got as an answer every time was… a whip lash! He was not trying again anytime soon, especially considering her current anger.</p><p>It went on for a little while, the detective beginning to curl up into a ball in the corner of the room, much to Edgeworth’s pity. But he was also no hypocrite: he had let the whip-yielding prosecutor do her thing and had not raised any objection so far. But he felt that if he let her go on any longer, Gumshoe wouldn’t stand up again. Moreover, they were losing time and for Miles Edgeworth, time was of the essence.</p><p><em>This is a true waste of time, like every time Franziska gets on a whipping frenzy… </em>He deplored, sighing lowly over the German’s exclaims of “You fool!” and “Scruffy detective!”. She was as vocal as always and it was getting a little annoying for the office owner’s ears.</p><p>“I think the good detective has gotten his fair share of whipping for the day, Franziska, wouldn’t you agree?” he asked, although the tone he used showed it was more than an order than a recommendation. But he also knew how stubborn the lady was and knew he’d have to raise his voice before she stopped.</p><p>And he was right, since she didn’t listen to a word he said and continued whipping the visibly pained Gumshoe. <em>Typical Franziska. </em>He thought before speaking up.</p><p>“Franziska, that’s enough.” Miles said, making sure his voice indicated he was getting bored of this awful waste of time and he would have liked to get back on topic. Still, he knew dangerously well that interrupting Franziska too harshly could only lead to further damage. Thus, he remained cautious as he spoke his next words. “Although he’s not always useful, I’d rather have the detective alive than dead. Bodies are not of any use to a prosecutor other than for autopsies.”</p><p>This seemed to calm Franziska down somewhat as she drew back and simply held her whip in the air threateningly. The situation had gone from “chaotic” to “almost chaotic” and it was a pretty good start, Miles thought.</p><p>When he noticed that the youngest prosecutor would not do him any harm anymore, Gumshoe carefully stood up from his curled-up position, still cowering in fear at Franziska’s every move. It took a good minute for the situation to go back to normal, much to Edgeworth’s appreciation. They would finally be able to move on and he was grateful for that.</p><p>“So, now that you two have settled this…” he wanted to add ‘trifling detail’ but he knew it would be a careless decision. “I think we can move on and discuss our strategy for the upcoming trials.”</p><p>A still unamused Franziska merely shrugged like it wasn’t any of her concern but he at least got the full attention of Detective Gumshoe whose face betrayed his need to move on from his undignified whipping session. Miles was kind of glad for that actually, since a desperate Gumshoe was often a more effective Gumshoe.</p><p>“I don’t mind having Simon Keyes testify as to Blaise Debeste’s crimes,” the prosecutor in red began, directing his words more at the other prosecutor sitting in the sofa than at the detective. “and since you’ll be the first one to prosecute out of the two of us, I trust you might even be able to make him admit to his guilt before I have to do anything.”</p><p>Franziska let out a small laugh. “Really, Miles Edgeworth?” she asked with some contempt in her voice. “You really think I’ll be doing all the work for you?”</p><p>“I never asked for that.” Edgeworth corrected her. “But whether we like it or not, your trial occurs before mine. It would be preferable for everyone if we could incriminate Keyes with his own words. I trust you understand that, Franziska?”</p><p>“I do.” the von Karma descendant simply said, catching Miles a little by surprise. This was pretty out of character for her to concede a point that easily. “As long as we can put those fools behind bars, I’m willing to work with you for a little longer.”</p><p>“Thank you, Franziska.” Miles said genuinely, a small smile on his face appearing to match the one his childhood rival was wearing. It was rare to see her smile not in her arrogant way but in a more trusting way but Miles appreciated the gesture. “I have no doubt we will be able to get fine convictions. Gumshoe?”</p><p>“Yes, sir?” the detective immediately turned to his boss as he heard him say his name. “What is it?”</p><p>“I will probably need to interrogate both Debeste and Keyes in the next few days.” the local legal genius explained. “Please keep in touch so that I might be able to do so when needed. Also, I will need all reports of the police’s interrogations sent here as quickly as possible as well as reports on their choice of defense.”</p><p>“Okay, sir! I’ll do that ASAP!” the detective replied, almost as a promise. Miles noticed Franziska chuckling, and he knew why.</p><p><em>It doesn’t seem like Franziska trusts Gumshoe to pull all that off. </em>He realized as he noticed her inspecting her bag of evidence. <em>Not that I blame her, honestly.</em></p><p>“I am counting on you, Detective, please make sure to do this properly.” the silver-haired prosecutor insisted, both with his words and his determined tone. “The general public wants nothing less than the death penalty for the two of them and while I’m certain Franziska will be able to treat Debeste to his rendezvous with the gallows herself, it wouldn’t do to fail on our end.”</p><p>“Got it! I’ll do my best so that we can put this string of cases behind us, sir!”</p><p>“That would be for the best.” Franziska commented, still looking at her evidence. “I’ve read more about the link between Blaise Debeste and your father’s last case, Miles Edgeworth.”</p><p>“Oh, you did?” he asked, genuinely surprised. After all, she had not been back from Cohdopia after Quercus Alba’s trial at that point in time and had not been there for the IS-7 reinvestigation.</p><p>“And while it hurts me to know my father was so easily fooled by a fool like Blaise Debeste, I am quite certain this reveal must have been much more hurtful for you, am I wrong?” she questioned, finally looking over her bag and meeting Miles’ eyes.</p><p>“Not entirely. A part of me will always despise Blaise Debeste for what he indirectly did to my father, but…” he trailed off, sorting his thoughts and feelings. This was still a touchy subject, even eighteen years after, and the new information he and Raymond Shields had gathered had been hard to swallow - even if there had also been good news. “I’ve learned from Wright and Ms. Fey not to remain stuck in the past and to look forward. I will simply hold my duty as a prosecutor and reveal the truth of his crimes, and once this is done, I’ll be able to process it better. I… think?”</p><p>The indecisiveness was rather rare for Miles Edgeworth, who was known to be a convinced man and an even more convinced prosecutor. This moment of doubt was mainly due to him retaining scars of his traumatic childhood - like his fears of elevators - and the balance between justice and personal feelings he had not found quite yet. On the first hand, he wanted Blaise Debeste to die for what he had done to Manfred von Karma, and by proxy, to his father; but he also knew he was a prosecutor and needed to remain levelheaded to accomplish his duty accordingly.</p><p>Franziska didn’t speak another word, leaving the three of them in silence in the middle of Miles’ office. And to avoid the blank becoming awkward, he decided to speak up again.</p><p>“Wright and the Fey cousins are coming back from their trip in London today,” he said, making sure to get the attention of Gumshoe - who was fidgeting with his pencil - and of Franziska - who had gone back to inspecting the evidence back again. “and I thought having dinner with them could be a good idea, especially considering none of us have seen them since Wright and Maya became a couple.”</p><p>“Oh, yeah, sure, Mr. Edgeworth!” Gumshoe was the first to reply, visibly enthusiastic at the idea of seeing their friends again. “Could I please bring Maggey with me, sir? I’m sure she’d love to come too!”</p><p>“Yes, you may.” his boss simply replied before a small smirk appeared on his lips. “Do you plan on using my invitation to invite her on a date in a fancy restaurant, Gumshoe?”</p><p>“N-Not at all, sir!” the detective quickly contested but began to blush a little at the mention of a romantic idea between him and the former policewoman. “J-Just some nice time with friends… heh heh…”</p><p>His awkward laugh told Edgeworth that he had hit right in the bullseye but decided to leave his subordinate alone before his red flushing became embarrassing. Instead, he turned back towards the German prosecutor who had not yet answered his question.</p><p>“Franziska? Do you want to join as well?” he asked, not hiding the fact that he wanted her to accept.</p><p>“Why not.” the young woman replied. “There is something I need to give Phoenix Wright anyway. I forgot to do so the last time we met due to the circumstances and I’d like to correct that.”</p><p>This caught Miles by surprise as he had no clue as to what his childhood friend and rival was talking about. But what surprised him the most was that Gumshoe visibly knew what she was referring to, seeing his reaction. However, glancing at the clock and noticing that three o’clock had passed for a good fifteen minutes, he realized he didn’t have time to inquire into it further, simply acknowledging Franziska’s response.</p><p>“Very well. I will send him a text to propose an invitation.” the barrister said as he took out his cellphone from his pocket. Seeing he had no missed calls or texts, he went right ahead and, after finding the defense attorney’s number, typed his text.   </p><p><strong>&lt;To Wright - 3:18 PM&gt; </strong> <em>“We are having dinner tonight with Franziska, Gumshoe and Maggey. The three of you are welcome to come too, if your trip was not too tiring. Please reply so that I can eventually send you the address. - Edgeworth”</em></p><p>He pressed send and after slipping his cell back inside his pocket, stood up from his fancy seat.</p><p>“I will have to get going,” he stated. “I still have some work to do at home and I’m afraid I won’t be able to get everything done if I do not depart now. I suppose you’ll be coming along, Franziska?”</p><p>The short-haired lady quickly stood up and readjusted her whip before replying with a quick and swift “Yes.”</p><p>“Gumshoe, I’ll send you the time and address later, alright?”</p><p>“Yessir! No issue here!” the goody detective saluted once more before moving from his spot against the wall.</p><p>“Good. Then let’s get going.” Edgeworth said as the three of them moved towards the door, the owner of the office with his keys in hand. They exited the room, and after Edgeworth locked behind them and double-checked to be sure no one could break in, they got going, Franziska and Gumshoe towards the elevator and Miles towards the stairs.</p><p>
  <strong> <em>To be continued…</em> </strong>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So there you have it for the first chapter! I hope you liked it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Honestly, I was relieved to see myself eager to write more fanfiction considering I went through a little drought recently. Feel free to comment for any criticism or other remark you might have: everything's welcome! Until then, best regards, dear readers.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Friendly Reunions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Miles and Franziska reunite with a certain trio of a famous lawyer and two amazing spirit mediums...</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong><span class="u"> <em>Arc One:</em> </span> <em> Imperfect Kids of Justice</em> </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong><span class="u"> <em>Chapter Two:</em> </span> <em> Friendly Reunions</em> </strong>
</p><p><span class="u"><strong> <em>Chapter's</em> </strong> <strong> <em> Rating:</em> </strong></span> <strong> <em> K+</em> </strong></p><p>
  <strong>April 13, 2019, 7:16 PM</strong>
  <br/>
  <strong>Downtown Los Angeles</strong>
  <br/>
  <strong>Providence Restaurant</strong>
</p><p>"This indeed does seem like a pretty fancy place, Miles Edgeworth." Franziska commented as they entered the restaurant her rival and childhood friend had booked a table at. "If there is something bearable about you, it's probably your taste in restaurants."</p><p>"Flattery won't get you anywhere, Franziska…" Edgeworth replied ironically as they stepped further inside, taking a look at the fancy-looking ornaments on the wall and the crystal chandeliers lighting up the restaurant. To say that earning an honest-to-goodness compliment from Franziska von Karma was hard would be an understatement: it was damn near impossible.</p><p>It was the way she had always acted around people, but Miles knew better than almost everyone in the world about her usual behavior. And while her comment would be interpreted as rude and offensive by anyone else, the prosecutor knew to take it as a form of tough love, and thus, as a compliment. And considering he had answered with irony, it balanced it out.</p><p>"Hmph," the young woman shrugged excessively. "don't ask me to feel any kind of pity over you when people stop making any compliment to you, Miles Edgeworth."</p><p>"Touché." he just said and allowed himself to take his distance from Franziska to talk to the waiter at the entrance desk.</p><p>"Good evening, sir." the young man greeted Miles politely. "Will it be a table for two?"</p><p>"Well, I actually already booked a table this afternoon via phone." the prosecutor explained, realizing the waiter he was talking to was not the person he had spoken to on the phone. "A table for seven."</p><p>"I see. Under what name was this reservation, sir?"</p><p>"Edgeworth. Miles Edgeworth."</p><p>The restaurant employee looked over his screen on his side of the counter before visibly finding what he was looking for. "Ah, yes. Then please follow me, sir."</p><p>The young waiter used a little door to get on the other side of the desk and began walking. Miles took that as his cue to follow him towards the table he had booked but not before making sure Franziska was following him. Once he made sure she was, they picked up the pace and found themselves in front of a nice table with sofas ready on both sides, clearly enough for seven people.</p><p><em>There aren't many customers nearby, which is a plus. </em>The magenta-wearing barrister noted as he glanced around the area. At least, they'd be able to catch-up with Phoenix, Maya, and Pearl in peace, without anyone eavesdropping on them. In fact, it made sense: Miles had decided that they all deserved a nice and happy reunion and had gone for one of the priciest and classiest restaurants in all of Los Angeles. Obviously, apart from other well-offs, the place wasn't packed with patrons.</p><p>"There you are. I assume the other customers will be here soon?" the waiter asked them, but mainly Edgeworth, as no trace of the other five was to be seen.</p><p>"Yes, they should. Could you please lead them here when they arrive?" the legal genius wondered, thinking that considering the prices, they could do at least <em>that</em> much. "They are a couple and a trio, if they do not arrive together."</p><p>"Very well, considering it done." the waiter said and bowed slightly. "But please, be seated, dear customers."</p><p>Miles sat down on one end of the sofa on the left side of the table while Franziska sat opposite to him before placing her handbag at her feet. Edgeworth knew it was a potential mistake to sit facing Franziska considering he could be whipped easily, but he still wanted to be close to her.</p><p>It was a very automatic feeling for him, but ever since he had met her, he preferred when she was close. Not that he would admit that, of course, but ever since they were children, he had tried to make sure she was always safe, especially when they both found themselves in the draining and dangerous prosecutor's path. Their years apart when they both protected their respective perfect winning record had not always been pleasant for Miles, considering he basically had no one to turn to at the time. At least, Franziska, although she had her flaws, had always been a close friend to him.</p><p>He wasn't sure she returned all of this, but he didn't mind.</p><p>"What are you thinking about, Miles Edgeworth?" Franziska asked, shattering the oldest prosecutor's train of thought.</p><p>"N-Nothing important." he lied, making sure to remain stoic as he did so. "Nothing you need to worry about, at least."</p><p>They were not good for small talk - thank the von Karma way of living for that - and Miles knew that after his little lie, he needed to change the topic for the only one they could have anything to chat about: work.</p><p>"Does Interpol have any ongoing mission in the region currently?" Miles asked the blue-haired young woman, resuming the conversation.</p><p>"Not that I am aware." the whip-yielding prosecuting attorney replied flatly, visibly seeing through Edgeworth's attempts at small talk. "Perhaps Lang will contact me soon, and considering my next series of trials in Europe is only in two weeks, I believe I could assist them."</p><p>Some disappointment settled in Miles' find as Franziska easily told him that the sooner she could get back to work, the better. He knew she was as much as a workaholic as himself was and that he had no right to judge her for that, but he had at least hoped he could spent some time with her before she eventually had to go back to Europe to prosecute.</p><p>There was so much lost time to catch up on, and every time one of them went abroad, they lost a precious opportunity to do so. Apart from Phoenix, Franziska was the person Miles preferred spending time with, but like with his defense attorney friend and best rival, he only found the chance to during work, when their minds were set on evidence, contradictions among other gloomy subjects.</p><p>He didn't want his disappointment to show, however, and spoke his reply with a completely flat tone, one that he knew he was most known for. "I see. I know that there is no break from crime-fighting, and I suppose this holds even more with international crime." he stated, not flinching once as he lied for the second straight time.</p><p>"Indeed. This is much more time-consuming than investigating local crimes, although much more satisfying." Franziska replied, oblivious that her advocating of her now main job only hurt her childhood friend more. "Interpol could use your help more often, too, Miles Edgeworth. You are a foolish fool, but a pretty intelligent one."</p><p>"Flattery again, Franziska?" the silver-haired attorney said as he smirked to the German woman. "Such praise is unlike you, although I do not refuse it by any means."</p><p>For a second, Edgeworth thought he noticed the slightest blush on Franziska's cheeks but thought he was seeing things. And it only lasted one second, really. Still, it was interesting enough to notice, he thought, since his childhood rival was not one to blush, under any circumstances.</p><p>But even before he got a chance to add anything more, he was interrupted by a loud and masculine voice coming towards their table.</p><p>"Hey, Mr. Edgeworth, Ms. von Karma!" the two prosecutors turned around to see one very noisy and cheery Detective Gumshoe arriving at their table, his speed making him drag the person he was holding hands with, Maggey Byrde, his recent girlfriend.</p><p>"Good evening, Gumshoe. And good evening to you too, Maggey." Miles said politely as the recently established couple smiled at them.</p><p>"Good evening, Ms. Byrde, Scruffy." Franziska said, respectfully when it came to Maggey but much less when it came to her goofy detective.</p><p>"Please have a seat." the prosecutor in red added, gesturing to the two sofas. He couldn't help but let out a short sigh when he noticed that his subordinate had decided to be the one sitting next to him, and not the former policewoman. If he had needed to choose, he would have preferred to hear Maggey's rambling rather than Gumshoe's.</p><p><em>I'm already hearing enough of his 'amazing' adventures at the office to let him drag them outside of it! </em>He thought as the detective, still in his customary trench coat - which seemed a little out of place in a fancy place like this - sat next to him, his large frame shaking the sofa a little.</p><p>Meanwhile, Maggey sat next to Franziska, visibly much to the prodigy's contentment. They had both wanted to avoid Gumshoe, it seemed, and Miles' pleas had gone unanswered.</p><p>"This place is nice, sir!" the detective said once properly seated, glancing around to see the many good-looking decorations the restaurant had to offer. "Truly fitting of you, Mr. Edgeworth!"</p><p>"Hmph," he let out the smallest trace of a chuckle before replying. "I suppose so."</p><p>The comment was quite similar to the one Franziska had made when they had entered themselves, although spoken Gumshoe-style. This led Miles wondering if he really had a thing in finding good restaurants.</p><p>"I will take a guess and say that this is the fanciest restaurant you have ever eaten in, Scruffy?" Franziska asked, almost mockingly. "You are truly lucky, Ms. Byrde, to get such a nice setting for a date."</p><p>"Heh heh…" Maggey chuckled in embarrassment and smiled at her boyfriend. "I suppose this holds true for the two of us, Ms. von Karma."</p><p>Both Miles and his loyal assistant laughed at the remark - discretely for the prosecutor and a lot less discretely for the detective - before he realized he probably shouldn't be laughing. Instead, he panicked a little before stuttering a question to the Goddess of Misfortune.</p><p>"W-What does t-that mean, Maggey?!" he asked, his mind struggling to piece together the potential meaning of what she had said.</p><p>"Well, that's simply a way to ask when the two of you will get together!" Maggey replied, both matter-of-factly and cheerily, a combination that normally didn't go well, but none of them had the time to focus on that!</p><p>"WHAAAAAAT?!" both Miles and Franziska blurted out in shock while Gumshoe gasped at his partner's words.</p><p>"M-Maggey! T-That's none of our business!" the tall police detective intervened before any of the prosecutors could say anything else, trying to defuse the situation his girlfriend had - probably unintentionally - caused.</p><p>But of course, a German prosecutor saw red and not a second after, her hand reached for her handbag and took out a very <em>specific </em>object. And with a deathful glare, tens of hits from the leather whip of Franziska's made Gumshoe gasp in pain.</p><p>Miles was glad her aim was as impeccable as ever or he would have suffered the consequences of his assistant's girlfriend's mistakes, something, he thought, would have been greatly unjust; especially considering Maggey's comments were also directed at him!</p><p>But instead of wondering about when his prosecuting rival would leave poor Gumshoe alone or if her cheeks were red of anger of embarrassment, he instead questioned himself about the deeper meaning of her words.</p><p><em>Is that the way people see Franziska and I? </em>He first asked himself, for the first time ever though since no one had ever brought up such a possibility. This led him to a first conclusion. <em>Probably not. She just said that because Franziska and I are both single and know each other since childhood, nothing more. Yes… Franziska is a long-time friend, nothing more…</em></p><p>What the prosecutor didn't know, however, was that he had begun to blush all too slightly, but blush, nonetheless. Had the unlucky young woman been the only one to see it - since the whip-addicted attorney was still occupied with unleashing her fury on the detective -, it would have been fine… But when he looked to his right and noticed a trio of people standing there, all he wanted to steal Franziska's whip and silence anyone who had seen that.</p><p>"Hey, everyone." a grinning Phoenix Wright greeted but directed his gaze at the magenta-wearing prosecutor, knowing extremely well he had caught him in a moment of weakness. "Long time no see."</p><p>"W-Wright!" Miles exclaimed, the defense attorney's comment making his embarrassment level exceed everything he had ever known. "H-How long have you been there…?" he asked lowly, pretty fearful of the answer he would be given.</p><p>"Certainly long enough to see you blush as red as your suit, Mr. Edgeworth!" added Maya Fey, a childish smirk on her face as she held her boyfriend's hand with her own. Next to her, her little cousin and daughter figure, Pearl, chuckled and looked at the scene unfolding with a wide smile.</p><p>Fortunately for the ace prosecutor, he was put out of his misery by another crack of Franziska's whip that echoed against the other side of the table, threatening the defense attorney and the Fey cousins. Phoenix didn't back down, however - a pretty rare occurrence for him, although he had possibly developed an immunity to the whip? - but understood going quiet was probably the better idea.</p><p>"Might we sit?" he asked his friends, getting <em>somewhat</em> back on track.</p><p>"Yeah, go ahead, Mr. Wright!" Maggey said when the two prosecutors and the detective remained silent. The little girl sat right next to her with her cousin sitting on her left. As for Phoenix, he sat on Gumshoe's right, facing Pearl. And very much like his rival and best friend earlier, he questioned his decision at the sight of Franziska's whip. Seated as he was, he was an easy target. Still, it was too late to back down and he sat there, hiding his fears extremely well.</p><p>"Sorry for our tardiness, by the way." the future Kurain Master said. "Our cab got caught up in a traffic jam because of a car accident…"</p><p>"No need to apologize," Miles finally spoke up again, gathering the other six' attention. "the most important is that you made it there safe and sound."</p><p>"So what have you all been up to while we were gone, guys?" Phoenix asked the two prosecutors and the young couple. "Knowing you, it's been eventful, huh?"</p><p>"Indeed." the prosecutor in red nodded. "The good detective and I have been working with Interpol for a little while to track down an international smuggling ring. These weren't the cheeriest events in any of our careers, but at least we got to the end of it."</p><p>"Really? Doesn't seem like everyone got vacation!" the oldest spirit medium chipped in with a pretty snide comment. "But that seems interesting!"</p><p>"You might want to reconsider that, Maya Fey." Franziska told her extremely calmly, to a point her tone was almost scary. "We aren't talking about a simple smuggling ring, but one that condones mass murder all over the world and destruction of national economies."</p><p>"That indeed seems pretty gloomy." the defense attorney admitted, a hand to his chin in thought. "I suppose with you three on the case, everything was solved smoothly?"</p><p>"Why the sudden praise, Wright?" Edgeworth asked with a smirk. "But you are correct. The mastermind behind the smuggling is now behind bars thanks to Franziska's prosecuting abilities."</p><p>"Well, that's nice. It's surprising we didn't hear about it, though." the future Kurain Master commented. "I thought a case that important would make the news."</p><p>"Not in this case." Gumshoe stated, getting into the discussion. "There were a lot of confidential and diplomatic secrets revealed during the different investigations and the LAPD made sure not to reveal anything."</p><p><em>Good summary from Gumshoe. It seems like miracles can happen, somehow. </em>The oldest prosecutor thought, glancing at his long-time assistant.</p><p>"And the fact it was overshadowed by an even more important string of cases also helped." Miles then added. "Not less bloody in any way, actually."</p><p>"Ugh, vacations sure are nice…" Phoenix said with a sigh, visibly regretting being already back and more than likely soon back in the courtroom dealing with murders. "I suppose you solved that too?"</p><p>"Yes, although this was a different beast altogether. And overshadowing it all was our good radio transceiver witness, Shelly de Killer."</p><p>Miles wondered for a second if he had said anything wrong when he felt the leather tip of Franziska's whip hit his right arm.</p><p>"Miles Edgeworth! Stop revealing confidential information to outsiders!" she exclaimed loudly, making her friend think she was more of a threat to the privacy of the information than he was.</p><p>"de Killer you say?!" Maya immediately reacted. "Like the psycho who kidnapped me?!"</p><p>"The very same. Although he still goes under the name 'John Doe', this time was an ice cream salesman. I'll pass you the details, but he was tricked by his client and ended up helping us solve the case, somehow."</p><p>"Talk about an unexpected ally…!" Phoenix said with a sigh.</p><p>"Indeed. And the most absurd fact about this case is that a professional assassin's involvement was not even the most surprising fact." Miles added, making sure to only whisper the words 'professional assassin' to satisfy Franziska's demands to keep it secret. "We finally tied up all the loose ends of DL-6."</p><p>"D-DL-6?!" both Maya and Phoenix exclaimed at the same time, shock all over the face. "W-Wasn't this over and dealt with your trial back then and… um… you know…"</p><p>"If you meant to mention the fact you revealed my papa's murderous acts, feel free to do so, Phoenix Wright." the cold voice of Franziska made itself heard even before her prosecutor colleague could respond.</p><p>"U-Um, no… that wasn't my intention, Ms. von Karma…" the defense attorney muttered weakly. It seemed he regretted his wording, from what the magenta-wearing barrister could tell. It was true that the subject of that particular case was touchy, especially when you had the child of both the victim and the murderer right at the table.</p><p>Edgeworth thought it was for the best to get back strictly on topic. "Anyway, the circumstances leading to my father's demise have been cleared out and the only thing the man responsible for tricking Manfred von Karma is waiting for is how he'll be executed."</p><p>"So there was someone else behind it, huh…? I suppose that makes sense…" Maya said out loud what looked more like a thought to herself. It made sense she'd have her two cents to throw regarding this case, considering her mother had disappeared because of it. "But enough gloomy stories for now! What have you been up to, Maggey?"</p><p>The change of topic was something everyone was thankful for, and they were glad Maya had decided to derail the conversation herself.</p><p>But Miles still knew that, due to a coincidence he had still not gotten over, even asking Gumshoe's girlfriend about her recent life could lead back to what they'd been discussing, namely the Yatagarasu case.</p><p>"Well… After being liberated thanks to you guys I began to work as a security guard at the Prosecutor's Office and um… let's just say it didn't go all too well…" the so-called Goddess of Misfortune explained and her mood seemed to dampen at the thought. "I decided to quit but I found a new job at a clothing shop downtown. And Dick has been there to help me, too!"</p><p>"Hehe, you praise me too much, Maggey…!" the detective in question told his girlfriend, visibly all embarrassed.</p><p><em>If there is something Gumshoe probably does better than I do, it's human interactions. </em>The legal genius thought as he noticed the two young lovers sending each other a warm smile. <em>I suppose that's why I managed to stand him for so long…</em></p><p>"Oh, the powers of love… This is so sweet…" the little medium said, speaking up for the first time as soon as her topic of predilection was brought up. "Ms. Maggey and Mr. Scruffy Detective… such beautiful love it could almost match Mystic Maya's and Mr. Nick's…"</p><p>The defense attorney coughed awkwardly, as if trying to divert attention away from him, but doing an extraordinarily poor job at doing so. If anything, this endeavor only turned more eyes towards him, while others directed their looks towards his young girlfriend.</p><p>"Well, Wright?" Miles said, the premise of a smirk appearing on his lips. "I think it is time you tell us about your field trip to the English capital, am I wrong? I'm certain you have plenty to tell."</p><p>"I can write you a freaking summary of the archeological discoveries from the 17th century to today, if you want!" the defense attorney shot back with an exasperated sigh. "Professor Layton is nice, no doubt about it, but he's way too passionate about what he does!"</p><p>"It is quite disrespectful to speak sourly of someone not present, Phoenix Wright," Franziska told her preferred whip victim. "especially when they are known worldwide for the quality of their work."</p><p>"Franziska is correct, Wright." the other prosecutor nodded. "From what I have heard and read; Mr. Layton is considered the best at what he does. I suppose it wouldn't hurt you to educate yourself on these matters, if only to show the right example to Pearl."</p><p>"That's a low blow, Edgeworth…" his rival and childhood classmate said and hung his head low. "While I was forced to listen to exposé after exposé from the gentleman, Ms. Fey here was getting her rest! I think I slept less during our stay in England than usual!"</p><p>"Oh, c'mon, Nick! We're pretty much getting used to short nights, aren't we?" Maya immediately spat back and winked in his direction.</p><p>Both prosecutors made something that sounded like a disgusted gasp as everyone clearly understood what the spiritualist had meant. And while the two stuck-up barristers were disgusted, Phoenix flashed red in embarrassment, Pearl seemed the most clueless (but not completely, which disgusted Miles even more - what in the world had the poor soul seen?!) while Gumshoe and Maggey simply chuckled - perhaps knowingly, perhaps not.</p><p>"M-Maya! D-Don't say things like that!" Wright exclaimed, his cheeks turning so red they seemed on fire.</p><p>"I would indeed prefer if you could keep this for yourself, too…" Miles added, and the exasperated look on his face told it all. <em>I might be a 'stuck-up jerk' as I was once told, but I at least keep my mouth shut considering private matters, something that a certain spirit medium could learn to do, apparently… I feel for you, Wright, I really do.</em></p><p>"I concur. Maya Fey," Franziska began, turning to the black-haired young woman on the other end of the sofa. "I firmly doubt anyone asked you to delve into the fooleries you and your foolish romantic partner seem to enjoy so much!"</p><p>For some reason - which Miles knew, Franziska would never hurt a fellow girl - Phoenix took the whip lash that followed and made a 'squeak' sound in pain.</p><p>"I am sorry for the interruption, dear customers, but could I take your orders?"</p><p>"AAAAAAAAAH!"</p><p>A collective shout erupted from the table, shared by the seven seated. It didn't take long for everyone to plan their part of the murder they'd need to cover up if the waiter - who was standing politely next to the table and that, somehow, no one had noticed! - had heard anything he shouldn't've.</p><p>
  <em>Great… That's just great…</em>
</p><p>
  <em> <strong>To be continued…</strong> </em>
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